Ashitha
Dancer, Choreographer & Founder
Ekam Institution of Arts
Muscat, Sultanate of Oman
A gifted dancer and choreographer with more than 20 years of experience, Ashitha with several accolades and recognitions to her credit, Ashitha is well-known in the cultural circuit of Oman as one of the founders of Ekam Institution of Arts, which trains aspiring dancers. As someone who has been dancing since the age of three, Ashitha is no stranger to other performing arts of Kerala such as Ottamthullal, and Chakayarkoothu, apart from Mono act and Mappilapattu, folk songs associated with the Muslim community of the state.
An Aesthetic Journey That Began in Nattika
Ashitha was born in Nattika in Thrissur District to the late Ashraf, a former NRI who was in the Gulf, and Vahitha, a homemaker. She is a graduate in English Literature from Sree Krishna College in Guruvayur and has a BBA from ASBM in Kochi as well as a Diploma in Kuchipudi. Later, she did courses in Airport Management, Graphic Designing and Digital Marketing. She also had the good fortune to undergo intensive training in Bharatanatyam under Radhika Surajit.
Her penchant for dance led her to study classical and folk dances right from a tender age. She studied Bharatanatyam under RLV Unnikrishnan and RLV Anand,Gireesh master and practiced Chakyarkoothu under Painkulam Narayana Chakyar. She mastered Ottamthullal by training under Kalamandalam Geethanandan and learned Folk Dance from Job Master in Thrissur. It was from Kalabhavan Noushad that she acquired the skills to become an expert in Monoact and Mappilappattu from Bappu koottil. Currently, she is undergoing advanced training in Bharatanatyam under Shijith Nambiar and Parvathy Menon.
Ashitha, who believes that art forms have no religious barriers, has the distinction of winning the Kalathilakam title for seven years straight at the sub-district and district levels. While making her debut in the high school category, she won the Kalathilakam title by coming first in mono act, Bharatanatyam, Mappilapattu, Folk Dance and Urdu recitation.
In the Kerala State Youth Festival in 2004-2005, she was the top scorer with 52 points. She came first at the State-level Bharatanatyam competition and won the first position in Bharatanatyam, Kuchipudi and Folk Dance at the International Youth Festival in 2006. In 2008-09, she won the first prize in a dance reality show 2 Crore Apple Megastars.
From a young age, she nursed the ambition to undertake solo performances of classic works of renowned Malayalam literary giants. She got a chance to perform the works of poet O N V Kurup during a mega event hosted to felicitate him for winning the prestigious Jnanpith Award in 2007. After witnessing her stellar performance, the celebrated poet lauded her on stage and said she was like his own grandchild. This accomplished dancer has also shown her face in a couple of movies as well.
She served as a judge at Indian School Youth Festivals in Oman twice and judged the state-level dance events for medical students. She also choreographed youth festival entries that bagged first place. Her notable performances include the visual adaptation of the poem ‘Penpuli’ (Tigress), representing Indian classical and folk dances at the Global Village in Dubai, playing the lead role in a dance drama at Puttaparthi in front of Indian guru Satya Sai Baba, rendering ‘Bhargavee Nilayam’ (Abode of Bhargavee), an iconic Malayalam novel, and ‘Bhoomikkoru Charamageetham’ before O N V Kurup and Sugathakumari.
Ashitha, who moved to the Sultanate after marriage, continued to pursue her artistic skills and her desire to inspire more young women and girls to dance led her to establish Ekam Institution of Arts in Ghala, where she is one of the instructors. A place where passion meets perfection, Ekam brings together tradition, creativity and joy through dance and nurtures talent, boosts confidence and creativity in each pupil. It offers classes in Bharatanatyam, Kuchipudi,Semiclassical dance,Cinematic Dance, Zumba and Fitness, Yoga and Wellness.
This dancer par excellence is also active in cultural events and she was part of the Vineeth Sreenivasan Show, Ekata Utsav 2026, Muscat Nights Show, and the Mappila Kala Academy Mega Show.
Family
Ashitha enjoys the support of her husband Abdul Niyas, a businessman, and they are blessed with three children. The eldest Nashwan Niyas is in Class V at Indian School Bowsher while the second child Eshan Niyas is in Class III. The youngest Ewaan Niyas is in Class I
Contact Information
Ashitha
Ekam Institution of Arts
Behind Aryabhavan
Ghala, Muscat
Mobile: +968 9118 5713
Email:
